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Thursday, September 8, 2011

It won't be long now before a new fire chief for the city is be appointed.

So says Mayor Ivan Court who tells CHSJ News the deadline for applications will be ending this week.

The city has been seeking candidates from across the country but Court is hoping to get applications from within the fire department itself. The Mayor makes a point of saying he hopes acting Chief Kevin Clifford applies.

Meantime, the city will also be looking to find another head of the local Emergency Measures Organisation with Muriel Provost leaving to take a teaching job with a university in Cape Breton.

While the city looks into switching garbage pick-up to a completely in-house operation which would save it half a million dollars a year, Councillor Chris Titus says that is only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to revamping the system.

He tells CHSJ News user fees for garbage disposal is the direction the city should be going in.

He says there are taxpayers in the city who are not getting their garbage collected while others are putting out too much trash.

He says other major changes to be considered include limits on how much trash you can put out, bi-weekly pick up for everyone, and the use of trash carts.

Police are looking for your help in finding a missing man from the New Direction Special Care Home.

Missing is 58 year old Lionel Daigle, who has been missing since April 4th.

He is described as 5 foot 3, 137 lbs and has a slim build. He has brown eyes, short salt and pepper hair, and was last seen wearing a 3/4 length grey hooded winter jacket, blue jeans and white sneakers.

A new development in cancer research has been discovered right here in Atlantic Canada. That word coming from the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation.

It reports researcher Dr. Christopher Richardson of Dalhousie Medical School in Halifax has conducted a study that indicates cancer cells are vulnerable to the measles virus.

This means that, ultimately, the measles virus could be used to fight cancer tumours. It's hoped, in the long-term, a vaccine could potentially be developed which could be used in the treatment of cancer patients.

The results of an audit done by the Provincial Department of Public Safety have been released at the monthly meeting of the Police Commission. City Police were found to be 100 per cent compliant with provincial policing standards.

Chief Bill Reid, while pleased with the results, says there's always room for improvement with quality assurance reviews when it comes to high risk operations.

The audit also commends the police department for how it makes do in facilities at City Hall that are inadequate for policing. This was the first meeting of the Police Commission since the murder back in July of businessman Richard Oland at his office on Canterbury Street. No one has been charged and the Chief made it abundantly clear to reporters "There would be no update".